KB5034441 Update error 0x80070643

On many Windows 10 systems, the update KB5034441 (Windows Recovery Environment update for Windows 10 21H2 and 22H2) failed with the error code 0x80070643.

KB5034441 error

0x80070643 (“ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE”) is a generic error code which means “Fatal error during installation.”

The DISM log may show the following entries:

[16088] ImageUnmarshallHandle: Reconstituting wim at C:\$WinREAgent\Scratch\update.wim.
[15624] Received unmount request for image with guid 73116ee5-7bf5-4e92-90a7-f25f8b714eb8.
[15624] Unmount for image at C:\$WinREAgent\Scratch\Mount complete.
[16088] [0x8007000e] StateStoreGetMountedImageWimbootEntries:(1285): Not enough memory resources are available to complete this operation.

Update: Microsoft has acknowledged the issue and is working on a fix

Source: Windows 10, version 22H2 | Known Issues

The January 2024 Windows RE update might fail to install

Status Originating update History
Confirmed N/A
KB5034441
2024-01-09
Last updated: 2024-01-12, 15:23 PT
Opened: 2024-01-12, 14:10 PT

Devices attempting to install the January 2024 Windows Recovery Environment update ( KB5034441) might display an error related to the size of the Recovery Environment’s partition. The Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) is used to repair or recover from issues affecting Windows.

Resulting from this error, the following message might be displayed.

  • ​”0x80070643 – ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE”

Workaround: It might be necessary to increase the size of the WinRE partition in order to avoid this issue and complete the installation. Note that 250 megabytes of free space is required in the recovery partition. Guidance to change the WinRE partition size can be found in KB5028997: Instructions to manually resize your partition to install the WinRE update.

Next steps: We are working on a resolution and will provide an update in an upcoming release.

Affected platforms:

  • ​Client: Windows 11, version 21H2; Windows 10, version 22H2; Windows 10, version 21H2
  • ​Server: Windows Server 2022

You may choose to resize the Recovery partition or simply hide the update and wait for Microsoft to issue a fix.

Cause

The problem happens due to a lack of free space in the Windows RE partition. The update failed to stage WinRE servicing operation due to insufficient disk space in WinRE partition.

Resolution

The KB5034441 update services your Winre.wim image and it required approximately 55 MB of free disk space on our test systems. If you’re using the Windows-default winre.wim, ensure that the Recovery partition’s size is 700 to 750 MB. If your Recovery partition’s size is smaller (e.g., 550 MB or something), please resize it to 700 to 750 MB.

Note: For OEM-supplied winre.wim (which has additional drivers and packages), ensure the Recovery partition’s size is atleast 100 MB more than the size of the custom wim.

Option 1: Resize the partition using DiskPart

The instructions to resize your Recovery partition are mentioned in the following Microsoft article.

KB5028997: Instructions to manually resize your partition to install the WinRE update – Microsoft Support

Note: The above MS article works only if your Recovery partition is situated next to (i.e., right side) the OS partition. You can check the disk layout by opening Disk Management.


Option 2: Resize the partition using third-party tools

Alternatively, you can try MiniTool Partition Wizard or EaseUS software to increase the size of the Recovery partition.


Option 3: Hide the KB5034441 Update temporarily, until Microsoft addresses this issue

Or, you may use Microsoft’s Show/Hide Updates tool to hide the KB5034441 update temporarily.



The tool can be downloaded from the following link:

https://download.microsoft.com/download/f/2/2/f22d5fdb-59cd-4275-8c95-1be17bf70b21/wushowhide.diagcab

Select the KB5034441 update and hide it.

KB5034441 wushowhide.diagcab

KB5034441 wushowhide.diagcab

Based on what we’ve noticed, many users have decided to skip/hide the KB5034441 update and wait and see if Microsoft releases a fix.

More Information

Source: KB5034441: Windows Recovery Environment update for Windows 10, version 21H2 and 22H2: January 9, 2024

This update addresses a security vulnerability that could allow attackers to bypass BitLocker encryption by using Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE). For more information, see CVE-2024-20666.

IMPORTANT

Some computers might not have a recovery partition that is large enough to complete this update. Because of this, the update for WinRE might fail. In this case, you will receive the following error message:

Windows Recovery Environment servicing failed.
(CBS_E_INSUFFICIENT_DISK_SPACE)

To help you recover from this failure, please follow Instructions to manually resize your partition to install the WinRE update.

Known issue Because of an issue in the error code handling routine, you might receive the following error message instead of the expected error message when there is insufficient disk space:

0x80070643 – ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE


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Ramesh Srinivasan is passionate about Microsoft technologies and he has been a consecutive ten-time recipient of the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional award in the Windows Shell/Desktop Experience category, from 2003 to 2012. He loves to troubleshoot and write about Windows. Ramesh founded Winhelponline.com in 2005.

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